(f) "Atomic weapon" means any device utilizing atomic energy, exclusive of the means for transporting or propelling the device (where such means is a separable and divisible part of the device), the principal purpose of which is for use as, or for development of, a weapon, a weapon prototype, or a weapon test device.

(g)

"By-product material" means any radioactive material (except special nuclear material) yielded in or made radioactive by exposure to the radiation incident to the process of producing or utilizing special nuclear material.

(h) "Commission" means the Nuclear Regulatory Commission or its duly authorized representatives.

(i) "Common defense and security" means the common defense and security of the United States.

(j) "Government agency" means any executive department, commission, independent establishment, corporation, wholly or partly owned by the United States of America which is an instrumentality of the United States, or any board, bureau, division, service, office, officer, authority, administration, or other establishment in the executive branch of the Government.

(k) "Nuclear reactor" means an apparatus, other than an atomic weapon, designed or used to sustain nuclear fission in a self-supporting chain reaction.

(1) "Person" means (1) any individual, corporation, partnership, firm, association, trust, estate, public or private institution, group, government agency other than the Commission or the Department, except that the Department shall be considered a person to the extent that its facilities are subject to the licensing and related regulatory authority of the Commission pursuant to section 202 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974,' any State

The Department facilities identified in section 202 are:

(1) Demonstration Liquid Metal Fast Breeder reactors when operated as part of the power generation facilities of an electric utility system, or when operated in any other manner for the purpose of demonstrating the suitability for commercial application of such a reactor.

or any political subdivision of, or any political entity within a State, any foreign government or nation or any political subdivision of any such govern; ment or nation, or other entity; and (2) any legal successor, representative, agent, or agency of the foregoing.

(m) "Produce," when used in relation to special nuclear material, means (1) to manufacture, make, produce, or refine special nuclear material; (2) to separate special nuclear material from other substances in which such material may be contained; or (3) to make or to produce new special nuclear material.

(n)

“Research and development” means (1) theoretical analysis, exploration, or experimentation; or (2) the extension of investigative findings and theories of a scientific or technical nature into practical application for experimental and demonstration purposes, including the experimental production and testing of models, devices, equipment, materials, and processes.

(o) "Restricted Data" means all data concerning (1) design, manufacture, or utilization of atomic weapons; (2) the production of special nuclear material; or (3) the use of special nuclear material in the production of energy, but shall not include data declassified or removed from the Restricted Data category pursuant to section 142 of the Act.

(p) "Source material" means source material as defined in subsection 11z. of the Act and in the regulations contained in Part 40 of this chapter.

(q) "Special nuclear material" means (1) plutonium, uranium 233, uranium enriched in the isotope 233 or in the isotope 235, and any other material which the Commission, pursuant to the provisions of section 51 of the act, determines to be special nuclear material, but does not include source material; or (2) any material artificially en

(2) Other demonstration nuclear reactors, except those in existence on January 19, 1975, when operated as part of the power generation facilities of an electric utility system, or when operated in any other manner for the purpose of demonstrating the suitability for commercial application of such a reactor.

riched by any of the foregoing, but does not include source material.

(r) "Testing facility" means a nuclear reactor which is of a type described in § 50.21(c) of this part and for which an application has been filed for a license authorizing operation at:

(1) A thermal power level in excess of 10 megawatts; or

(2) A thermal power level in excess of 1 megawatt, if the reactor is to contain:

(i) A circulating loop through the core in which the applicant proposes to conduct fuel experiments; or

(ii) A liquid fuel loading; or

(iii) An experimental facility in the core in excess of 16 square inches in cross-section.

(s) "United States", when used in a geographical sense, includes Puerto Rico and all territories and possessions of the United States.

(t) "Controls" when used with respect to nuclear reactors means apparatus and mechanisms, the manipulation of which directly affects the reactivity or power level of the reactor. "Controls" when used with respect to any other facility means apparatus and mechanisms, the manipulation of which could affect the chemical, physical, metallurgical, or nuclear process of the facility in such a manner as to affect the protection of health and safety against radiation.

(u) "Design bases" means that information which identifies the specific functions to be performed by a structure, system, or component of a facility, and the specific values or ranges of values chosen for controlling parameters as reference bounds for design. These values may be (1) restraints derived from generally accepted "state of the art" practices for achieving functional goals, or (2) requirements derived from analysis (based on calculation and/or experiments) of the effects of a postulated accident for which a structure, system, or component must meet its functional goals.

(v) "Reactor coolant pressure boundary" means all those pressure-containing components of boiling and pressurized water-cooled nuclear power reactors, such as pressure vessels, piping, pumps, and valves, which are:

(1) Part of the reactor coolant system, or

(2) Connected to the reactor coolant system, up to and including any and all of the following:

(i) The outermost containment isolation valve in system piping which penetrates primary reactor containment,

(ii) The second of two valves normally closed during normal reactor operation in system piping which does not penetrate primary reactor containment,

(iii) The reactor coolant system safety and relief valves.

For nuclear power reactors of the direct cycle boiling water type, the reactor coolant system extends to and includes the outermost containment isolation valve in the main steam and feedwater piping.

(w) "Department" and "Department of Energy" means the Department of Energy established by the Department of Energy Organization Act (Pub. L. 95-91, 91 Stat. 565, 42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.), to the extent that the Department, or its duly authorized representatives, exercises functions formerly vested in the Atomic Energy Commission, its Chairman, members, officers and components and transferred to the U.S. Energy Research and Development Administration and to the Administrator thereof pursuant to sections 104(b), (c) and (d) of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 93-438, 88 Stat. 1233 at 1237, 42 U.S.C. 5814) and retransferred to the Secretary of Energy pursuant to section 301(a) of the Department of Energy Organization Act (Pub. L. 95-91, 91 Stat. 565 at 577-578, 42 U.S.C. 7151).

(Sec. 161, as amended, Pub. L. 83-703, 68 Stat. 948 (42 U.S.C. 2201); sec. 201, as amended, Pub. L. 93-438, 88 Stat. 1243 (42 U.S.C. 5841))

[21 FR 355, Jan. 19, 1956, as amended at 25 FR 1072, Feb. 6, 1960; 26 FR 4990, June 6, 1961; 28 FR 3196, Apr. 3, 1963; 31 FR 15145, Dec. 2, 1966; 33 FR 18611, Dec. 17, 1968; 36 FR 11424, June 12, 1971; 39 FR 4871, Feb. 8, 1974; 40 FR 8788, Mar. 3, 1975; 43 FR 6924, Feb. 17, 1978; 45 FR 14200, Mar. 5, 1980; 45 FR 18905, Mar. 24, 1980]

§ 50.3 Interpretations.

Except as specifically authorized by the Commission in writing, no inter

pretation of the meaning of the regulations in this part by any officer or employee of the Commission other than a written interpretation by the General Counsel will be recognized to be binding upon the Commission.

§ 50.4 Communications.

Except where otherwise specified, all communications and reports concerning the regulations in this part should be addressed to the Director of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555, or may be delivered in person at the Commission's offices at 1717 H Street, NW., Washington, D.C. or at 7920 Norfolk Avenue, Bethesda, Maryland.

[40 FR 8788, Mar. 3, 1975]

§ 50.8 Reporting, recordkeeping, and application requirements: OMB approval. (a) The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has submitted the information collection requirements contained in this part of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (Pub. L. 96-511). OMB approved the information collection requirements on October 30, 1981.

(1) The OMB approval number is 3150-0011.

(2) OMB approval expires April 30, 1982.

(b) The approved information collection requirements include the application, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements contained in §§ 50.30, 50.33, 50.33a, 50.34 (b), (c), (d), (f), 50.34a, 50.35(b), 50.36, 50.36a, 50.48, 50.54 (f), (p), (q), (r), (s), (t), (u), 50.55(e), 50.55a, 50.59 (b), (c), 50.71 (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), 50.72 (a), (b), 50.80, 50.82, 50.90, and Appendices A, B, C, E, G, H, J, K, and R.

[46 FR 63033, Dec. 30, 1981]

REQUIREMENT OF LICENSE, EXCEPTIONS

§ 50.10 License required.

(a) Except as provided in § 50.11, no person within the United States shall transfer or receive in interstate commerce, manufacture, produce, transfer, acquire, possess, or use any production or utilization facility except as

authorized by a license issued by the Commission.

(b) No person shall begin the construction of a production or utilization facility on a site on which the facility is to be operated until a construction permit has been issued. As used in this paragraph, the term "construction" shall be deemed to include pouring the foundation for, or the installation of, any portion of the permanent facility on the site, but does not include:

(1) Site exploration, site excavation, preparation of the site for construction of the facility, including the driving of piles, and construction of roadways, railroad spurs, and transmission lines;

(2) Procurement or manufacture of components of the facility;

(3) Construction of non-nuclear facilities (such as turbogenerators and turbine buildings) and temporary buildings (such as construction equipment storage sheds) for use in connection with the construction of the facility; and

(4) With respect to production or utilization facilities, other than testing facilities, required to be licensed pursuant to section 104a or section 104c of the Act, the construction of buildings which will be used for activities other than operation of a facility and which may also be used to house a facility. (For example, the construction of a college laboratory building with space for installation of a training reactor is not affected by this paragraph. This paragraph does not apply to production or utilization facilities subject to paragraph (c) of this section.

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (b) of this section, and subject to paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section, no person shall effect commencement of construction of a production or utilization facility subject to the provisions of § 51.5(a) of this chapter on a site on which the facility is to be operated until a construction permit has been issued. As used in this paragraph, the term "commencement of construction" means any clearing of land, excavation or other substantial action that would adversely affect the environment of a site, but does not mean:

(1) Changes desirable for the temporary use of the land for public recreational uses, necessary borings to determine foundation conditions or other preconstruction monitoring to establish background information related to the suitability of the site or to the protection of environmental

values;

(2) Procurement or manufacture of components of the facility; and

(3) With respect to production or utilization facilities, other than testing facilities, required to be licensed pursuant to section 104a or section 104c of the Act, the construction of buildings which will be used for activities other than operation of a facility and which may also be used to house a facility. (For example, the construction of a college laboratory building with space for installation of a training reactor is not affected by this paragraph.)

(d)(1) Each person subject to the provisions of paragraph (c) of this section, who is, on March 21, 1972, conducting activities permitted pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section in effect prior to March 21, 1972, may furnish to the Commission within 30 days after March 21, 1972 or such later date as may be approved by the Commission upon good cause shown, a written statement of any reasons, with supporting factual submission, why, with reference to the factors stated in paragraph (d)(2) of this section, the activities should be continued, pending the issuance of a construction permit, notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (c) of this section. If such written statement has been submitted, within the time specified, such activities may continue to be conducted pending Commission action pursuant to paragraph (d)(2) of this section.

(2) Upon submission of a statement of reasons pursuant to paragraph (d)(1) of this section the Commission may authorize the continued conduct of activities permitted by paragraph (b) of this section in effect prior to March 21, 1972, upon consideration and balancing of the following factors:

(i) Whether continuation of the activities will give rise to a significant adverse impact on the environment and the nature and extent of such impact, if any;

(ii) Whether redress of any adverse environmental impact from continuation of the activities can reasonably be effected should such redress be necessary;

(iii) Whether continuation of the activities would foreclose subsequent adoption of alternatives; and

(iv) The effect of delay in conducting such activities on the public interest, including the power needs to be served by the proposed facility, the availability of alternative sources, if any, to meet those needs on a timely basis, and delay costs to the applicant and to consumers.

(3) Activities permitted to be continued pursuant to this paragraph (d) shall be conducted in such a manner as will minimize or reduce their environmental impact.

(e)(1) The Director of Nuclear Reactor Regulation may authorize an applicant for a construction permit for a utilization facility which is subject to § 51.5(a) of this chapter, and is of the type specified in §§ 50.21(b) (2) or (3) or 50.22 or is a testing facility, to conduct the following activities: (i) Preparation of the site for construction of the facility (including such activities as clearing, grading, construction of temporary access roads and borrow areas); (ii) installation of temporary construction support facilities (including such items as warehouse and shop facilities, utilities, concrete mixing plants, docking and unloading facilities, and construction support buildings); (iii) excavation for facility structures; (iv) construction of service facilities (including such facilities as roadways, paving, railroad spurs, fencing, exterior utility and lighting systems, transmission lines, and sanitary sewerage treatment facilities); and (v) the construction of structures, systems, and components which do not prevent or mitigate the consequences of postulated accidents that could cause undue risk to the health and safety of the public. No such authorization shall be granted unless the staff has completed a final environmental impact statement on the issuance of the construction permit as required by Part 51 of this chapter.

(2) Such an authorization shall be granted only after the presiding offi

cer in the proceeding on the construction permit application (i) has made all the findings required by § 51.52 (b) and (c) of this chapter to be made prior to issuance of the construction permit for the facility, and (ii) has determined that, based upon the available information and review to date, there is reasonable assurance that the proposed site is a suitable location for a reactor of the general size and type proposed from the standpoint of radiological health and safety considerations under the Act and rules and regulations promulgated by the Commission pursuant thereto.

(3)(i) The Director of Nuclear Reactor Regulation may authorize an applicant for a construction permit for a utilization facility which is subject to § 51.5(a) of this chapter, and is of the type specified in §§ 50.21(b) (2) or (3) or 50.22 or is a testing facility, to conduct, in addition to the activities described in paragraph (e)(1) of this section, the installation of structural foundations, including any necessary subsurface preparation, for structures, systems and components which prevent or mitigate the consequences of postulated accidents that could cause undue risk to the health and safety of the public.

(ii) Such an authorization, which may be combined with the authorization described in paragraph (e)(1) of this section, or may be granted at a later time, shall be granted only after the presiding officer in the proceeding on the construction permit application has, in addition to making the findings and determinations required by paragraph (e)(2) of this section, determined that there are no unresolved safety issues relating to the additional activities that may be authorized pursuant to this paragraph that would constitute good cause for withholding authorization.

(4) Any activities undertaken pursuant to an authorization granted under this paragraph shall be entirely at the risk of the applicant and, except as to matters determined under paragraphs (e)(2) and (e)(3)(ii), the grant of the authorization shall have no bearing on the issuance of a construction permit with respect to the requirements of

the Act, and rules, regulations, or orders promulgated pursuant thereto. (Secs. 101, 185, 68 Stat. 936, 956, as amend

ed (42 U.S.C. 2131, 2235; sec. 102, Pub. L. 91-190, 83 Stat. 853 (42 U.S.C. 4332); sec. 201, as amended, Pub. L. 93-438, 83 Stat. 1242, Pub. L. 94-79, 89 Stat. 413 (42 U.S.C. 5341); sec. 161 as amended, Pub. L. 83-703, 68 Stat. 948 (42 U.S.C. 2201))

[21 FR 355, Jan. 19, 1956, as amended at 25 FR 8712, Sept. 9, 1960; 33 FR 2381, Jan. 31, 1968; 35 FR 11460, July 7, 1970; 37 FR 5748, Mar. 21, 1972; 39 FR 14508, Apr. 24, 1974; 39 FR 26279, July 18, 1974; 39 FR 33202, Sept. 16, 1974; 42 FR 22887, May 5, 1977; 43 FR 6924, Feb. 17, 1978]

850.11 Exceptions and exemptions from licensing requirements.

Nothing in this part shall be deemed to require a license for:

(a) The manufacture, production, or acquisition by the Department of Defense of any utilization facility authorized pursuant to section 91 of the Act, or the use of such facility by the Department of Defense or by a person under contract with and for the account of the Department of Defense;

(b) Except to the extent that Administration facilities of the types subject to licensing pursuant to section 202 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 2 are involved;

(1)(i) The processing, fabrication or refining of special nuclear material or the separation of special nuclear material, or the separation of special nuclear material from other substances by a prime contractor of the Department under a prime contract for:

2 The Department facilities identified in section 202 are:

(1) Demonstration Liquid Metal Fast Breeder reactors when operated as part of the power generation facilities of an electric utility system, or when operated in any other manner for the purpose of demonstrating the suitability for commercial application of such a reactor.

(2) Other demonstration nuclear reactors, except those in existence on January 19, 1975, when operated as part of the power generation facilities of an electric utility system, or when operated in any other manner for the purpose of demonstrating the suitability for commercial application of such a reactor.